The present invention relates to eye drop dispensers and, more particularly, to an eye drop dispenser employing a slide to assist in guiding a dispensed drop into the eye.
The use of eye drop dispensers is well known. Eye drops are employed for any number of reasons, from the elimination of "redness" caused by fatigue to the prevention of infection following surgery. These eye drops, whether of a prescription or over-the-counter nature, are typically packaged in a container having an eyedropper attached to its end. In order to administer the drop to the eye, a patient must tilt his or her head back, position the dropper over the eye and dispense the appropriate number of drops into the eye.
Although the procedure is easily described, many individuals find it difficult to self-administer eye drops. This finding is especially true with respect to the elderly, the invalid or those with vision problems. In particular, many patients find it difficult to properly position the dropper over the eye such that the dispensed drop will "fall" into the eye. Moreover, even assuming that the patient is able to properly position the dropper over the eye, the natural "blinking" reflex can result in the dispensed drop not entering the eye. This is both wasteful (in terms of dollars) and medically undesirable in that the patient may not be certain that the required dosage has been administered to the eye. Finally, many patients are uncomfortable with positioning an eyedropper, which typically includes an elongated tip, in close proximity to the eye for fear that the dropper will "poke" the exposed eye.
In addition, many eye drop dispensers include squeezeable containers or bottles having resilient walls which are compressed to administer one or more drops. Some bottles are more easily squeezed than others, and some persons experience difficulty in applying sufficient pressure to the walls to cause a drop to be dispensed.
Several prior art references disclose attempts to address drawbacks associated with conventional eyedroppers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,310 (and related U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,678) discloses an applicator for liquid eye preparations. The applicator, although stated to ease the application of eye drops, is still hindered by the tendency of the patient to "blink" at the moment the drop is dispensed. Further, the design of the '310 applicator forces the patient to bring the elongated point of the applicator into close proximity with the eye, thereby increasing the likelihood of "poking" the eye or, at a minimum, increasing the fear of such happening.
Another prior art device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,002,168. The '168 device is stated to be capable of dispensing a fluid into the eye without loss of such fluid due to inadvertent closing or blinking of the eye resulting from the fear of a sharp object being positioned proximal the eye. Still, the drop dispensed from the '168 device must fall into the eye, an occurrence that may cause blinking in and of itself. Finally, the '168 device employs an elaborately designed dispensing mechanism not readily adapted to the storage containers commonly used in the industry.
It would therefore be desirable to provide an eye drop dispensing assembly which facilitates the administration of eye drops by reducing the tendency of the patient to "blink" during administration of the drop and by also reducing the tendency of the user to "miss" the eye for fear of poking the elongated tip of the dropper into the eye. Such an assembly would allow a dispensed drop to "roll" into the eye, as opposed to having the dispensed drop "fall" into the eye. This eye drop dispensing assembly should also be inexpensive to manufacture and easily adaptable to the containers commonly employed in the industry.